Running head: THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN DEVELOPMENT AND DIVERSITY

The Complementary Relationship between Development and Diversity and its Role in Education
Lena M. Rodriguez Coln
The George Washington University

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN DEVELOPMENT AND DIVERSITY

Development and diversity are not only two concepts that go hand-in-hand, but are also
concepts that nourish each other. In order to understand an individuals development, one must
understand how social, cultural and historical factors influence it. In order to understand the
diverse populations that inhabit our nations, one must look at how they have developed and what
has impacted them. It is through examining interpersonal and intercultural relationships that,
then, one can grasp how an individuals sense of self, understanding of the world and behaviors
come to being.
Development refers to the biological, cognitive and psychosocial growth individuals
experience throughout their different life phases. It is not necessarily a linear process, but a
recursive process where an individual undergoes continuous transformations based on their
experiences and the relationships they forge with their external environment. While an
individuals growth can be progressive, it also reconciles prior experiences with the present,
which are reflected through the behaviors and identities individuals project. At times, individuals
straddle through different developmental phases (i.e. latency, or adolescence) and respond
accordingly through their actions. Specifically referring to psychosocial development, Waddell
(2002) states, Any one state of mind in the present, however fleeting, is founded in the past, and
at the same time encompasses a possible future (p. 5). Furthermore, Waddell says it best when
she states, Development involves some kind of process of mourning at every stage (p. 79)
which never truly gets resolved. Developmental experiences linger in the subconscious of the
individual, and sometimes in their conscious thought, which continuously influences how they
engage with the external world and how they develop relationships. Moreover, during
developmental processes, individuals knowledge, conceptions of self, and their understanding of

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN DEVELOPMENT AND DIVERSITY

the inner workings of the world are shaped. One of the factors that influences these conceptions
about the self and the external world is diversity.
Diversity refers to the consideration of difference between two or more subjects
(Martusewicz, Edmunson, & Lupinacci, 2011, p. 22). It is the multiplicity that differentiates the
relationships between these subjects. Both individuals cognitive and psychosocial development
are largely influenced by the social, cultural and historical influences in the environment in
which they find themselves. Race, ethnicity, class, gender, sexuality, ability and language are
among the distinguishing factors that shape their engagement with and function in society. To
understand how an individuals developmental process is shaped and influenced, and how we can
assist that process ourselves, it is crucial to understand how these multiple factors play a role in
each individuals life.
Throughout the biological developmental stagesthat is, an individuals maturation from
birth, to infancy, to early childhood, to adolescence, and so onsubjects experiences and forged
relationships influence how they perceive the world, and how they perceive themselves in
relation to that world. As Tatum (2000) states, people are the mirror in which we see ourselves
(p. 9). It is through interpersonal relationshipsand relationships that emphasize differences
between both sides of the mirror, between the conceptions and misconceptions formulated at a
glancethat identities are shaped. During the earliest stages of life, the mother (or primary
caregiver) is the most influential individual in the childs life. As the child grows, he or she
begins to develop newer relationships, first with the other members of the householdfather
and/or siblingsthen with the community they live in, followed by the peers and teachers in the
schools they attend, and so on. As these relationships develop, the child is exposed to the
diversity within the world. They begin to understand themselves based off of the difference, or

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN DEVELOPMENT AND DIVERSITY

the gap, between them and others, formulating conceptions and misconceptions. We, as
educators, can use this knowledge to intervene and help a childs development according to their
individual needs.
Mothers (or primary caregivers) serve as a childs thinking breast (Waddell, p. 30); they
not only physically nourish their child, but also provide emotional support by responding to the
childs needs. Mothers connect and respond to the child to provide the tools he or she needs to
overcome obstacles and to further promote individual thinking capacities and further the childs
confidence, spontaneity and interest (p. 42). At this time, they provide the child with
mechanisms needed to become independent from them and to be able to respond to situations
accordingly. When the mother (or caregiver) and child are unable to forge a relationship where
the mother can respond to the childs needs, the child then develops defense mechanisms to
alleviate the pain.
In education, teachers serve the role of these primary caregivers. Outside the family,
school is the primary identity development system for adolescents: By the time we turn fifteen,
weve expanded the palette or canvas of our identity development well outside our parents
(Galley, 2008, p. 88). As the new thinking breast, or perhaps a complementary thinking
breast, teachers must be able to understand the message children convey through both verbal
and nonverbal communication. Not only this, they must also be able to interpret the information
to respond accordingly and positively influence both the childs academic and psychosocial
development. Many times, students act out because it is their defense mechanism to alleviate
pain, and teachers must be able to process that information in order to respond and provide the
tools the child needs to reconcile whatever obstacle he or she is facing. Most importantly, the
teacher must be able to consider the implications of all student demographics; that is, educators

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN DEVELOPMENT AND DIVERSITY

must also understand the complexity behind the students identity formation as well as
formulated conceptions and misconceptions. As Lee (2008) states, stereotypes are,
unfortunately, alive and well among students and educators. [] these stereotypes can have a
tremendous impact on these adolescents self-concept, academic choices, and relationships with
others in the school environment (p. 76). Teachers must break stereotypes in order to promote
an active and healthy development while providing an equal justice opportunity for their
students.
In Who Wins and Who Loses? (2008), Brantlinger interviews a couple of students from
opposite social circles. One of the students is Travis, a young boy whose family is in a low social
class. He has not been performing well in school and plans to drop out of school. In Travis case,
his social class has strongly influenced his sense of self and how others perceive him. In his
community, it is normal for individuals to leave academics behind and focus on jobs. His
brothers have already done this, neither having finished their high school experience. Because it
is what is expected, he feels it is a viable option, especially considering his academic
performance has continuously been poor.
A part of the reason why his performance didnt improve was because he had no
thinking breast, or containment, to help negotiate and move forward from the obstacles he
faced. His mother, while well-intentioned, didnt perceive Travis poor performance; instead she
believed he was successful in school. Teachers, instead of interpreting Travis behavior and
looking for ways to help him improve, didnt respond to his needs: If you dont understand,
they [the teachers] didnt treat you like a piece of trash. Some teachers helped you if you had a
problem. Most didnt. They helped some kids, their pets, but they didnt care about most of us,
didnt care about me, if I flunked or anything (Brantlinger, p. 153).

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Because of his social class, teachers didnt expect much from Travis. Instead, theyd
focus on others who were at a higher scale. His family dynamic dictates that hes doomed to
repeat his brothers histories. Therefore, why should he even try? Yet, had Travis received the
proper assistance, he could have been more successful and broken the misconceptions used to
label him because of his class. Receptiveness and responsiveness are essential to individuals
emotional and mental development. It is not just necessary at home, but also at school and within
all social situations. Instead, he developed coping mechanisms, one of which was to demonstrate
he didnt care.
In Michies (2009) Holler if You Hear Me, readers meet Reggie, an African American
living in a Latino community. At a young age, Reggie was taken from his mother and inserted
into an environment where he lacked containment. He didnt have access to a thinking breast
that would help negotiate his feelings and nourish his development at home nor at school. Then,
he moved to Chicago, where he was being discriminated against because of his racial identity.
Reggie was one of the only African American students in the school where Michie taught. He
didnt fit into the stereotype of what it meant to be an African American student, nor did he share
the same characteristics as his Latino and White peers. He was quiet, and mostly kept to himself.
And, physically, he was different. However, in the classroom environment and school culture,
Reggie began to thrive since he was finally receiving the support to negotiate his feelings and
sense of self.
Reggies first teacher was able to create a comfortable, inclusive classroom environment.
His focus was on the uniqueness of every student and allowing them the space to thrive based on
their own strengths. Reggie began to find comfort in the classroom culture created by the teacher,
and began to experience academic success. The teacher provided the containment Reggie had

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN DEVELOPMENT AND DIVERSITY

been lacking thus far. Additional to this, Reggie joined the basketball team. This served as an
extracurricular activity he could use as an outlet, a place of sanctuary where he could exert the
energy built up from his experiences and where could he forget about themor process them. It
was the appreciation and cohesion of the multiplicity within the school walls that helped Reggie
overcome the displacement he had once felt. As stated by Reggie (p. 172), What we gotta
realize is that we may be different, but we got a lot in common. And the differences make it more
interesting. It gets boring when everybodys the same.
Development is rooted in a delicate balance between introjective and projective
processes [] not only the content of the projections themselves but also the very capacity to
process them can become part of the personality (Waddell, p. 190). An individual is shaped by
the experiences and connections he or she makes along the span of his or her life. It is his or her
relationships with the external world, as well as how the individual internalizes those
relationships, that influence an individuals personality and actions. As educators, we must be
able to interpret students personalities and behaviors, as they can be indicative of a deeper, root
problem for which they need assistance to negotiate. If we are able to provide them the tools they
need to succeed, based on their diverse needs, they can thrive. In addition to this, we must be
able to understand them, to be aware of their culture so that we can not only assist them, but do
so in the most respectful, inclusive and helpful ways possible.
To foster a socially conscious environment, and to allow for equal learning opportunities,
I would incorporate culturally responsive (relevant) teaching, which is Instruction that
includes and connects to the strengths of a child's home culture as a way of the child to learn
(Martusewicz, Edmunson, & Lupinacci, p. 205) and challenges the devaluing of home culture
(p. 201). By doing this, students will be able to connect to the instruction and begin to form links

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that are socially conscious. In addition to this, I would construct the class seating chart by
spreading the diverse populations within the classroom throughout the classroom so that
members of different social groups can interact, and to also minimize distractions. Furthermore, I
would advise the school to conduct a Global Village activity, which could be run one of two
ways. The first would be to have students research and represent a country from their familial
heritage. However, this could be problematic for students who do not know their family
background, and for a school where the student population isnt very diverse. The second would
be to have students partner up, research and represent a country of their choice. They would have
to present the countrys traditions, beliefs, language, food and/or music. After this experience,
they should be able to understand the complexity behind the formation of identity and consider
and appreciatediversity.

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN DEVELOPMENT AND DIVERSITY

References
Brantlinger, E. (2008). Who wins and who loses? Social class and student identities. In M.
Sadowski (Ed.), Adolescents at school: Perspectives on youth, identity and education (pp.
147-166). Cambridge, MA: Harvard Education Press.
Galley, M. (2008). Who am I as a learner? Would girls and boys tend to answer differently? In
M. Sadowski (Ed.), Adolescents at school: Perspectives on youth, identity and education
(pp. 86-98). Cambridge, MA: Harvard Education Press.
Lee, S.J. (2008). Model minorities and perpetual foreigners: The impact of stereotyping on Asian
American students. In M. Sadowski (Ed.), Adolescents at school: Perspectives on youth,
identity and education (pp. 75-83). Cambridge, MA: Harvard
Martusewicz, R., Edmunson, J., & Lupinacci, J. (2011) Ecojustice education: Toward diverse,
democratic, and sustainable communities. New York: Routledge.
Michie, G. (2009). Holler if you can hear me: The education of a teacher and his students
(2nd ed.). New York: Teachers College Press.
Tatum, B. D. (2000). The complexity of identity: Who am I?. In Adams, M., Blumenfeld, W.
J., Hackman, H. W., Zuniga, X., Peters, M. L. (Eds.), Readings for diversity and social
justice: An anthology on racism, sexism, anti-semitism, heterosexism, classism and
ableism (pp. 9-14). New York: Routledge.
Waddell, M. (2002). Inside lives: Psychoanalysis and the growth of the personality. London: H
Karnac (Books) Ltd.